


The Stranger

by Erika_Riddle



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Marauders Era - Fandom
Genre: A bit sad, Depression, M/M, Marauders' Era, Modern AU, also, mention of rape and prostitution, not actually diagnosed depression but still deppression, wolfstar
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-28
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2018-05-10 01:55:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,533
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5564521
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Erika_Riddle/pseuds/Erika_Riddle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sirius is desperate enough to follow a stranger home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own anything but the prompt. Thank you.

Sirius couldn't remember the last time he had a shower. Or when he had a warm meal that wasn't from McDonald's. It had been almost three months since he left his parentsand their fancy life and to be honest, the only thing he missed was his brother. And maybe a bed. A shower. And everything else. Who was he trying to fool? He missed everything except his parents. He had his guitar, but that wasn't exactly everything he needed. He had thought everything would be okay, if he only had his guitar. Oh, how wrong he had been.

He had managed to figure out that the train station gave the most money. Children often stayed to listen and later begged their parents to give Sirius some. Which was exactly what he needed today. It was cold outside and he hadn't been able to eat properly for days. Not to mention that the church he stayed at probably was tired of his ass already.

Today was no different. He felt disgusting. And his whole body screamed for something to eat. A cup of coffee. The guy that stopped a few feet away probably noticed. Or was it a girl? Sirius had no idea. Either way, it was the most attractive person Sirius had seen since he looked himself in the mirror.

"Summer after high school, when we first met", he sang, even though his throat was rather sore and his voice sounded like hell. "We'd made out in your Mustang, to Radiohead."

The guy walked closer and Sirius grinned lightly. He was pretty sure his eyes were begging for money, even though he did his best not to show it. The guy slowly knelt and left some money in the case for the guitar, only to take a step back and watch Sirius as he sang. The song came to an end (thank god, Sirius needed some water) and Sirius slowly began packing his things. The guy, that weirdly enough still watched him, walked closer again. Great. Now he was going to get robbed. Exactly what he needed.

"I'm Remus." Sirius turned to him, watched the guy. So it was a guy. His curly hair made him look like an angel. An angel with scars over his face. Maybe scars from when he fell.

"Okay." Sirius said and closed his eyes for a second. He should see if he could stay in the church tonight, as well. It wasn't a long walk and at least Sirius wouldn't freeze to death. He promised himself that tonight would be the last night to stay in the chuch. He was not going to go back there after tomorrow morning. Not a chance.

"Do you want to join me? I'm going home." His voice was surprisingly deep. And soft. He was taller than Sirius, sure, but he didn't seem to be all that strong. Maybe Sirius was wrong.

What the hell was the man doing, though?

"I'm not a prostitute." Sirius growled, even though he was slightly scared the man would take that badly. Maybe he would force Sirius to come with him and rape him? The thought made Sirius want to throw up.

"I know. But it seems like you need something to eat. Maybe somewhere to sleep." The other was going to rape him. Great. Sirius quickly got up and shook his head. No, thanks. He wasn't going to do that. Maybe... It wasn't worth it, right?

"Come on, otherwise I'll just give you enough money for a hotel and I honestly don't have enough money for that."

Oh, well. Maybe, then...

"Fine." Sirius got all his stuff together and watched the guy, who seemed to have forgotten where they were going. Another few moments later, and he quickly nodded towards the stairs.

"Come on. Let's go." he said and the next thing Sirius knew, was how he followed the other. Weirdly enough, it felt right. It felt very right, but still so wrong. Why did he follow this man? Because Sirius was desperate.

Ten minutes later, Remus held the door open for Sirius, who quickly walked inside. It was an apartment building and Remus would later tell Sirius, that his apartment was on the seventh floor. The walk completely drained Sirius and he didn't bother talking at all.

_Lupin_ , the door said. Remus Lupin. The name even sounded like one on an angel. What the hell? He couldn't fall in love with a stranger. Remus was kind enough to hurry up, though. He hurried up and unlocked the door, held it open for Sirius again and gently patted Sirius back. Sirius couldn't understand why this stranger helped him.

Before Sirius could even protest, Remus took Sirius' guitar and left the room. Sirius didn't actually have enough energy to protest and only walked towards the couch. It had been fully visible from the door and Sirius couldn't resist. Only thinking about it made him want to go to sleep without another word to Remus. Wherever that guy went. 

The apartment wasn't anything like what Sirius was used to. Nothing of the fancy shit, which only made it more cozy. Much more cozy. Sirius couldn't tell if the many painings on the wall was something Remus had done himself or if it was only Remus' favorite artist, but everything seemed to be done by the same person.

"There you go!"

Remus voice snapped Sirius right back to reality. Sirius hadn't actually noticed that the other was back in the room until he spoke and didn't realise what Remus _did_ speak about until he saw the plate. Two sandwiches and a cup with something that smelled like tea. It seemed to Sirius, as if he owed the other man the world. 

Remus body against Sirius', made up for the cold weather and Remus voice made up for the long hours of only stressed people shouting and screaming in the train station. Nothing seemed to be bad about this. Not even the fact that Remus was a stranger. Not anymore, anyway.

The sandwiches tasted like heaven. Not to mention the hot tea. It was a bit too hot, which didn't do a damn thing. Once again, Sirius decided not to say anything, this time because he was busy eating. It felt rude to talk with his own mouth stuffed with food. Remus happily spoke next to him, either way. He didn't seem bothered by the few hums that came as replies, either. 

Only a few minutes went by, before Sirius finished his food and the tea and only a few moments later, he felt so tired he could barely think. Remus mumbled about something and then Sirius had a nice blanket wrapped around his shoulders and Remus' warm body pressed even closer to his own.

Because of his last few thoughts before he fell asleep, he didn't hear Remus soft voice: "Sleep tight."

_How come a stranger would be this nice and want nothing in return?_


	2. Chapter 2

Sirius woke up when a door somewhere in the distance were slammed close. He stayed on the couch, until he realised that Remus wasn't next to him. It was the middle of the day, Sirius was sure about it. Where the hell was Remus?

Sirius quickly got up from the couch, where Remus obviously had made it comfortable for Sirius. He even found a pillow.

"Remus?" Sirius called, but the apartment was quiet. Not a single sound could be heard.  
This was bad. He had to find Rem-... Or maybe he could just read the note on the table. Hell, he needed to stop. Everything was fine. Remus wasn't exactly a killer. He hoped.

Sirius reached out for the note and watched the sloppy handwriting for a moment, before he read it:

"Good morning!

I happened to go to work before you woke up, and you seemed to be enjoying yourself. I made you both breakfast and lunch (you can find it in the kitchen) and there's clothes and a towel for you in the bathroom. I'll be home by seven. We can talk, then.

Call if you need anything!

078xxxxxxxx 

Remus

Oh, and I still don't know your name."

Sirius smiled lightly and shook his head. He could lay down for another few minutes. He also promised himself to cook Remus something, for when he came home. If he found anything to cook.

If Sirius was lucky, Remus would have an IPhone, and then he could borrow the charger. He could call his brother.

The thought hit him like a train. He hadn't spoken to Regulus for three whole months.

Sirius quickly got up from the bed and began looking for a charger. It took him almost an hour to find one, but it didn't really matter, since he could charge his phone. He could call Regulus.

While he waited, Sirius quickly showered and ate the sandwiches he found in the fridge. Next to the plate where they were, a bowl stood. A small note told Sirius that it was his ("This is for you, stranger!"). He didn't have to eat it yet, though.

Remus' clothes were comfortable, but at least three sizes too big. Remus wasn't chubby, but he was tall. Sirius assumed that it was one of the reasons for the gigantic clothes. He left the hoodie and his own clothes in the bathroom for now, only to run to his phone as soon as he could.

He had fifty-two texts and twelve missed calls. A few were from his parents, but most were from Regulus. Of course. How could he had been so stupid to leave him? All alone?  
Sirius knew Regulus number by heart and it only took a matter of seconds, before he could press the phone to his ear and the side of his head.

Beep... Beep... Beep...

"Finally managed to call, huh?"

Sirius heart dropped. Regulus sounded tired. Very tired. Upset, too, maybe. They were brothers, after all. Maybe Regulus had actually been upset when Sirius left. Maybe.

"I... My phone died a few days after I left.." Sirius mumbled, tried to come up with something to say that mattered. As the older brother, he knew he had to take care of his brother, but he had failed, and he wanted the other to know how sorry he was. Sirius couldn't find the words.

"Yeah, I noticed."

Regulus didn't seem to be as upset anymore. No, he seemed to be pissed off. Fuck.

"Reg, come on. Could we at least talk about this?"

A long and uncomfortable silence followed. Almost awkward. Sirius wasn't sure if the other had hung up on him or not and was just about to have a look, when he could hear Regulus again.

"Goodbye, Sirius."

Sirius was certain Regulus hung up after that, but stayed with the phone in his hand. He didn't dare to have a look at the screen. Maybe Regulus had something else to say and didn't dare to hang up, just like Sirius?

_Yeah, right, idiot._

Sirius wasn't sure for how long he stood there. It surely was more than an hour, but he couldn't... It hurt too much. If he could only call Regulus again and apologize, then maybe...

 _Not gonna happen_ , he told himself. He couldn't stand there. He should cook Remus something. He should wash his own clothes and maybe cut his hair shorter. Or he could rock the man-bun like he used to do before all of this.

That was it.

Remus would be home in less than three hours and Sirius had a lot to do. He couldn't stand there like a fool.

He gently placed his phone on the table again and left the room. He began washing his clothes. Remus thankfully had a washing machine in his bathroom and Sirius actually knew how to wash clothes. Sirius made sure there wasn't anything else that needed to be washed and took the rest of his own clothes. Another two shirts, a pair of jeans and three pair of underwear. It was the only thing he had been able to fit in his small backpack. His jacket and his shoes should be on the chair in the hallway. Maybe he could wash them, too, once the dinner was finished.

Sirius cleaned up a bit, before he returned to the kitchen. The only thing Sirius could cook without a recepie was soup and he decided that it seemed to be fine. It was cold enough outside for a warm soup.

He found some potatoes and some sausages, together with a whole lot of other leftovers. He didn't use all of them (strawberries probably didn't work in a soup). When he waited for the soup to heat up, he deleted all of the missed texts and calls, even his contacts (his parents, Regulus, the rest of his family) He wanted to forget his old life. Remus seemed to want him to stay around and Sirius could find a job. They could work on this together. Like friends.

The thought actually made Sirius smile. He had a friend. A real friend. 

Sirius didn't have enough time to wash his jacket and his shoes, but he could do that later. It wasn't exactly as if he had anything else to do. He would, of course, help Remus, if Remus asked him to.

Ten minutes passed, and Sirius could hear the door unlock. He set the table, waited for Remus to call for him, but nothing came. It took Sirius another few moments to realise that someone was talking. Someone that _wasn't_ Remus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I managed another chapter. I have the whole fic planned, so I'll only have to write it now. Hah.  
> Hope you liked it! Let me know what you think, it makes it a lot easier to write with critic.  
> Also, about the phone number: I have no idea how they look in UK. Feel free to tell me and I'll change it! Thank you.


	3. Chapter 3

Sirius hesitated, when he finally stepped out from the kitchen and into the livingroom. He usually didn’t mind people and this wasn’t the time to hesitate. He needed friends and, most importantly, a job. He needed to be able to pay rent and for the food he ate. If Remus let him stay, that was. Sirius needed to stop worrying about this, for sure, or he would be a mess by the end of this week. He could look for a job tomorrow, dinners were always looking for people, right? He could take shitty hours and maybe earn a little extra.  
The first thing Sirius noticed was Remus. He looked amazing, with his green-ish eyes and that perfect hair of his. It made Sirius relax a little and it was absolutely amazing that Remus had thought about this. Sirius did _need_ it. New friends.  
Remus soon pointed towards a boy, possibly a man his own age, and said “Peter”. The guy was a little chubby and absolutely adorable. Sirius was about to reach out and take his hand, but only ended up pulled away by Remus.  
“And this, this is James.”  
Sirius nodded and glanced around the room and did his best to ignore the woman with the firely red hair. She was stunning, Sirius couldn’t help but to stare.  
The man he had barely given as much as a glance, grabbed his hand and firmly shook it.  
“That’s my girl, pal, you better leave her to me.”  
Sirius finally got a proper look at his face and relaxed a little when he met his kind eyes. And his hair looked out of control. Sirius couldn’t help but to smile, which made the man in front of him smile and the whole thing felt a little better.  
“I know you guys are having a moment, but the pizza are gonna get cold.”  
Sirius was fairly sure that was the woman, but since he hadn’t heard Peter talk, he wasn't sure. When he later had a look at Remus, he was happy to see that Remus already sat down. Sirius quickly joined him.  
“I’m Sirius, by the way. Uh, don’t think I told you either, Remus.” Sirius said and was about to reach out for the other’s hand, but changed his mind and didn’t. His hands were a little sweaty and he had spent the night with the other, after all. A little weird to take his hand now, wasn’t it? Remus didn’t seem to mind, though, and the three new people turned to him and smiled. It was weird to have four faces smiling at him like this.  
“The woman is Lily.” Remus mumbled when he leaned a little closer to reach for the pizza. Sirius nodded, a little relived. A second later, a slice of pizza was forced in his hand and he took a bite. He hadn’t realised just how hungry he was until now.  
James and Lily seemed to be fighting over something, while Peter held a nice sounding conversation with Remus. Sirius decided to only listen, loved the familiar sounds of an apartment building. He could hear children play somewhere and Sirius loved it. The world felt more alive like this.  
Once there wasn’t any pizza left, Sirius fell back against the couch and relaxed. He let his eyes fall close and the comforting sounds of conversations lulled him to sleep.

A few hours later, Sirius were shaken awake by Remus’ big hands. Sirius glanced around him and were surprised by just how quiet the apartment was. He glanced towards the closed door and wondered where the people had gone and what time it was. It couldn't be that early already, could it?  
“Sirius?”, Remus asked him, with that unbelievble dark, but soft voice. “I’m going to work. Wanna join me? I think they could need another waiter.”  
It sounded way fancier than it actually was. It was a bar, tiny and with a lot of regulars, if he were supposed to believe Remus. Sirius only nodded and smiled a little, tried to listen as Remus pointed to some of the people and told him names. The few tables were either filled with old men and women or teenagers, surely not old enough to drink. Sirius wasn’t one to judge, he hadn’t been old enough to smoke when he tried his first.  
Sirius barely had to shake hands with the man that owned the bar before he got the job. In fact, Remus told Sirius that they were desperate for people to work nights and Sirius honestly couldn’t say no. As stated a billion of times already, Sirius needed the money.  
The same evening, Sirius did his best to listen to the costumers and work at the same time. He couldn’t care less about them, but he could use a tip. Hopefully, Remus was sleeping by now, and Sirius could surprise him with proper breakfast.  
“I love the music in here.” a woman told Sirius, who only nodded, as he tried to remember how to make a certain drink. He had gotten papers for the recipies, but he couldn’t exactly check them when people ordered.  
“And your hair… Did I already tell you that? Your hair looks so soft…”  
Sirius smiled a little at her and passed her the drink she had ordered. Only another twenty minutes before he could go “home”. He was exhausted and he wanted to talk to Remus about the important stuff. Like rent and if he could really stay. If he couldn’t, it sure was time for him to look for an apartment.  
One minute felt like a year, two felt like a life time. When twenty minutes finally had passed, the woman who had left together with her friends. Sirius couldn't get Remus breakfast yet, since everything was closed. This lead him to the only thing the world had to offer at this hour: his package of cigarettes. He lit one and put it between his lips, as the things he had done his best to forget came crashing back. His family. More specificly: Regulus. His brother hadn’t exactly asked for this and still, Sirius had been stupid to run away from him. Sirius damned himself over and over, as he restlessly walked, walked past closed coffee shops and drunk people. He stopped once, petted a kitten, but kept walking as soon as it ran away from him. He liked to watch the city wake, liked to see as the empty streets were filled with stressed people. It made him think less of his own problems and made him wonder what these people worried about, made him wonder why he couldn’t be like them. Maybe too busy to worry.

When Sirius finally returned to Remus’ apartment, he did his best to be as quiet as possbile. He didn’t want to wake the other up, in case he was still sleeping. In fact, Sirius was about to open the bedroom door and have a look at the other, when he heard the muffled sound of Remus’ voice. He didn’t seem too happy.  
“I’ve told you, I can’t do that right now. No, I need to look after him until he’s okay. B-Boyfriend? No!”  
Sirius took a step back and quickly returned to the couch. Remus had a boyfriend? It shouldn’t bother Sirius, but it did. Maybe it was the chubby kid from the other day. Peter? Or maybe Sirius hadn’t met him. Either way, Sirius didn’t like it. Maybe a little possesvie, but he couldn’t help it. He quickly wrote a note for Remus and left it together with the breakfast in the kitchen. By the time Remus got up, Sirius managed to pretend he was asleep, as he listened to Remus get ready.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've noticed that the past two chapters aren't all grammaticly correct, but I'll leave them as they are for the moment. Thank you for your patients. :)  
> This chapter is really nothing but filler, and I apologise. Hope you liked it, either way. :)


	4. Chapter 4

The weekend came faster than any of them had expected and Remus had been kind enough to promise to stay home. During the past week, they had spoken a lot about whether or not Sirius could stay and how much he was supposed to pay Remus. At first, Remus had only rolled his eyes when Sirius asked about it, but as the week passed, Remus took his time to sit down and discuss it. Turned out Remus did need the money. The apartment was a little too expensive for only one person and Sirius understood. He was sure he wouldn’t be able to afford an apartment without someone to share it with.

They also decided that, if Sirius was careful, they could share a wardrobe for now. But only until he had the money to buy his own clothes. Sirius understood that, too.  
Remus apparently knew way more than how to make drinks in a bar and both cut Sirius hair and helped him find clothes that Remus didn’t use and that didn’t look as if they were five sizes too big. Remus even managed to sew one or two shirts to make them fit perfectly. Sirius couldn’t help but to joke about it for an hour afterwards. Remus didn’t seem to mind, but his cheeks were flushed in a bright red colour for the whole time.

So, Friday night, they decided to order pizza (again) and curled up together on the couch. It was pretty nice. Sides touching and a too small blanket wrapped around their shoulders. Absolutely amazing.

“Why does one always eat too much?” Sirius let out, as he curled up next to Remus again, wrapped the blanket around his shoulder and pressed Remus slightly closer. The other only laughed, as Sirius pressed his eyes together. They were watching something Sirius had wanted to watch on Netflix. He had watched the movie a billion of times already and he knew it wouldn’t hurt if he missed a few minutes.

“Don’t fall asleep again!”, Remus chuckled. “I never get to know you, all you do is sleep!”

Sirius quickly opened his eyes at that and glanced up at the other. Remus wasn’t wrong, and Sirius knew it. He fell asleep as soon as he got back from the bar in the morning and got up only an hour before he had to leave, which meant he only got to spend an hour with Remus, as the other got ready for bed and Sirius got ready for work. Sure, it would be nice to have some time together, but they had both agreed on trying to stay home during the weekends or at least go out together. They were still a little tense around each other, despite the fact that they spent more time pressed close to each other than anything. And what Sirius had heard earlier the same week, he still hadn’t dared to ask about it. 

“Well…”, Sirius began, tried to find something to say. “That’s on you. You gave me the shittiest hours every.”

For a second, Remus seemed to hesitate, before he smiled. Sirius had almost been scared he had hurt the other. He never intended to hurt him. Sirius humour was horrible, at times. 

“Well, someone lived on the streetes before I got around.”

Remus always had such clever things to say, didn’t he? Always. They hadn’t spoken about what had happened, before all of this. Sirius hadn’t dared to tell the other and Remus hadn’t asked. Sirius called his brother as soon as he was awake and Remus wasn’t close and something told him Remus thought it was his ex. 

“I’m glad you did come around”, Sirius admitted quietly. “I don’t know what I would have done if you didn’t.”

Sirius was proud, sometimes a little too proud, but he had to let the other know. And, as soon as he began talking, he couldn’t stop. 

“I mean, I don’t know for how long I would have lasted. I might have gone back home and I… I don’t think I can deal with… that. With my family. My mother is… She’s horrible. My father can be even worse. They don’t hit me or anything, that’s not it, but… The only thing that kept me from leaving in the first place was my brother. Reg is amazing. I love him.”

Remus reaction wasn’t anything close to what Sirius had imagined, but then again, Sirius hadn’t meant to say any of this. While Sirius was too caught up in his own mind to do anything, Remus wrapped both his arms around Sirius’ body and only when he felt Remus cheek against his own, did he snap back to reality. Remus’ cheek was hot against Sirius’ and it felt so very, very secure, that Sirius allowed himself to let go. He sobbed, as he held Remus and Remus held him. He hadn’t felt this home for years and he hadn’t know Remus for more than a few days.

“You know what”, Remus said, at last. “Maybe we should call Peter and James, and all four of us can go out. Just us boys.”

Sirius let out a small laugh and tried to dry his tears, met Remus’ kind eyes and felt his heart skip a beat. Hadn’t he realised just how beautiful the other was until now? Sirius wasn’t sure. It didn’t feel real, none of this did. In fact, Sirius was sure he would wake up in his own bed at any time. But… Remus was there, even when it was hurting, and that had to be proof enough that this was real, right? Bad dreams didn’t last forever, after all.


	5. Author's Note

I've decided to rewrite this, if anyone is still interested in it. I don't know if I'll ever publish it or not or how far I'll come with it, but I'll try.

Happy Holidays!


End file.
